This invention relates generally to a recording element used in printing and, more particularly, to protecting the image receiving layer of the recording element prior to and after printing.
Inkjet prints, prepared by depositing ink drops onto inkjet recording elements, are subject to environmental degradation. These prints are especially vulnerable to damage resulting from contact with water and atmospheric gases such as ozone. The damage resulting from the post imaging contact with water can take the form of water spots resulting from deglossing of the top coat; dye smearing due to unwanted dye diffusion; and/or even gross dissolution of the image recording layer. Ozone bleaches inkjet dyes resulting in loss of density thereby reducing the lifetime of the prints. To overcome these deficiencies, inkjet prints are often laminated. However, conventional lamination processes require a separate roll of laminate material that is applied over the image only after the image has been printed onto the inkjet recording element, and thereby afford no protection to the element prior to printing, leaving the element vulnerable to handling and environmental damage
For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication 2000-135856 A relates to a recording medium and a method for inkjet printing wherein a protective layer is simultaneously removed from a backside of an unprinted recording media and applied to a frontside of a printed recording media. This process is disadvantaged in that the image receiving layer of the recording media is left unprotected prior to printing.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,201,976, issued to Eastin, on Apr. 13, 1993, discloses a method of making a laminated adhesive label from rolls of a first composite having the following structure: paper, adhesive, and plastic film. A roll of the first composite is unwound and the paper is printed. An adhesive is then coated over the printed paper. A second roll of the plastic film from a previously exhausted roll of the first composite is transferred onto the printed paper now bearing the adhesive creating a second composite having the following structure: plastic film, paper, adhesive, and plastic film. The plastic film is then stripped from the second composite to provide the label having the following structure: plastic film, paper, and adhesive and the second roll (the previously exhausted roll of the first composite). Alternatively, the plastic film from the first composite (referred to as a release liner) is redirected via a set of rollers to the printed paper surface of the first composite without being collected. This process is disadvantaged in that an adhesive must be applied to the surface of the printed image in order to adhere the plastic film to the paper.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,495,016, issued to Viberg et al., on Jan. 22, 1985, discloses a method of making sterile tubes from rolls of a composite having the following structure: plastic layer 1, plastic layer 2, and paper. A roll of the composite is unwound and plastic layer 1 is removed and, after passing through a series of rollers, is reattached via a heat seal onto the back surface of the paper creating a reconfigured composite having the following structure: plastic layer 2, paper, and plastic layer 1. The top surface of plastic layer 2 remains sterile throughout the process. The reconfigured composite is then sealed thermally along its bottom and longitudinal edges creating the aseptic tube. Alternatively, the roll of composite is unwound and passed through a series of rollers so that the web of material winds back such that plastic layer 1 contacts the back paper surface of the web of material. The transfer of plastic layer 1 then takes place as described above. This method is disadvantaged because the image receiving layer of the recording media is left unprotected prior to printing, and is thereby vulnerable to mechanical abrasion and contamination.
An object of this invention is to provide a method of making a durable inkjet print using an inkjet recording element that has a transferable laminate (for example, a polymeric film) that is removed from an image receiving layer of the recording element before printing and applied to the image receiving layer of the recording element after printing. Another object of this invention is to provide a method of making a durable inkjet print that minimizes contact of the image receiving layer with the environment both before and after printing. Another object of this invention is to provide a method of making a durable inkjet print that, during the manufacturing process, does not require application of an adhesive.
According to one feature of the present invention, a method of producing a laminated image on a receiver includes providing a recording element comprising an unimaged image receiving layer having a removable laminate adhered to the unimaged image receiving layer; and transferring the removable laminate to an imaged image receiving layer.
According to another feature of the present invention, a method of producing a laminated image on a receiver includes providing a first recording element comprising an unimaged image receiving layer having a removable laminate contacting the unimaged image receiving layer; providing a second recording element comprising an unimaged image receiving layer; printing an image on the unimaged receiving layer of the second recording element, wherein the unimaged receiving layer of the second recording element becomes an imaged image receiving layer of the second recording element; and transferring the laminate from the unimaged image receiving layer of the first recording element to the imaged image receiving layer of the second recording element.
According to another feature of the present invention, a method of producing a laminated image on a receiver includes providing a parent recording element comprising an image receiving layer having a removable laminate contacting the image receiving layer; providing a daughter recording element comprising an image receiving layer; transferring the laminate from the image receiving layer of the parent recording element to an imaged image receiving layer of the daughter recording element.